Electri-c cell



c. FERY.

ELECTRIC CELL.

APPUCATION man FEB. :9, 19m.

1,356,977, Patented Oct. 26,1920.

PATENT OFFICE.

CHARLES FERY. OF PARIS, FRANCE.

ELECTRIC CELL.

Application filed February 19, 1918.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, CHARLES FlinY, a citizenof the Republic of France, residing at Paris, France, have inventedcertain new and useful improvements in Electric Cells,

of which the following is a specification.

The local action? on open circuit in the case of the majority of cellsis due to the convection ot' the liquid around the negative electrode.usually consisting of zinc. Now the zinc salt thus formed has a. greaterdensity than that of the exciting liquid, and.

this produces a continuous renewal of the exciting liquid around thenegative electrodo.

Moreover with the present form of the zinc electrodeswhich are immersedverti rally in the liquid, it can be remarked that it is at the surfaceof the liquid that the zinc disintcgratcs or wears away. This is due tothe presence of the oxygen of the air. which accelerates dissolving ofthe zinc at this point.

The presence of the zinc at the surface of the liquid has also thedisadvantage of absorbing the oxygen which dissolves in the liquid andcontributes to depolarize the can bon electrode.

it should be added that the difi'usion of the zinc salts at the upperpart of the liquid has the further detrimental effect of forming oxysalts in the )OTBS of the positive carbon electrode, whici salts foulthis electrode by the formation of crystals or by 95 the formation ofzinc hydrate.

The zine salts formed v during normal working of the cell tend by theirdensity to form into a layer at the bottom of the 3 cell vessel.

40 it therefore the negative electrode is placed horizontally at thebottom of ,the vessel the entire surface of the zinc will be in a liquidof uniform constitution and local .action will be avoided. ()n the otherhand the upper part of the positive electrode which occupies theremainder of, the height of the liquid will never be in contact with thesaturated zincic solution thus formed, and as its porosity will remaingood, depolarization will be rapid.

To take a specific case, if we take the zinc. carbon, ammonium chloridcell, to apply the conditions set out above, this cell Specification ofLetters Patent.

Patented Oct. 26, 1920.

Serial No. 218,16.

will be constituted as follows and is illus- 61 trated in theaccompanying drawing, wherein: Figure 1 is a vertical sectional view ofsuch a cell; and Fig. 2 is a plan view of a modified form of carbonelectrode.

The zinc plate Zn (Fig. I) placed in the bottom of the vessel isinsulated from the carbon cylinder by a felt disk or ring F or by acruciform or other suitable piece of ebonite or any other insulatingmaterial. The contact with this plate of nine is made 05 by a wire finsulated for its eutjre riigul portion by gutta. percha or otlu-iiusulatit'ig material.

During the working of the cell a litmus or turmeric paper occupying theentire 0 depth of the vessel will show that the liquid below the feltbecomes acid. chlol'id of zinc being formed there. On the other hand thelight liquid occupying the upper portion of the cell becomes alkaline,as it 75 contains the ammonia of the exciting" club The ammonia gas cantherefore be liberated freely and without encountering the chlorid ofzinc, with which it would form the well known crystals of ordinary salam- 8t moniac cells.

The tubular electrode C may ev dently be replaced by a piece of carbonhaving wings or ribs or with parallel plates. with the ob ject ofincreasing the depolarizin surface 3! of the ositive electrode (Fig. 2.)

The liottom of the positive electrode being at a very small distancefrom the nega-. tive. the electric resistance of the cell is yery low.

' It is further topis observed that the fall of the liquid lev in thevessel in conse quence of evaporation does not cause: the surface of theelectrodes inpresence oi each other to vary as in the usualconstruction.

Rapid depolarization of cells of the present construction arises fromelectric currents which are generated between the top and the bottom ofthe carbon electrode.

Referring to Fig. 1. it will he remarked that after working. the bottomof the positive (carbon) electrode is much polarized, while the top.bathedb a liquid in contact with the air, is very little polarized.Consequently an electric current is established between these twomoints,and the strength of which regulates the depolarization. v

The strength of these currents is fur-the} increased by the fact thatthe positive electrode is in contact in its height with liquids ofdifi'erent densities and consequently of d'iflerent constitutions.

In.order that this depolarization may be rapid the orizontal section ofthe liquid should alsd be great.

Claims:

1. An electric cell, comprising a vessel, an excitin liquid, a solublene ative electrode situate horizontally at the ottom of said vessel,said electrode being entirely covered bythe exciting liquid, a liquidlayer of greater density than the exciting liquid, saturated with ionsor salts of the same metal as the soluble electrode covering saidnegative electrode, said layer of liquid of greater density beingimmobilized by its weight at the bottom of the vessel and being ofsubstantially uniform constitution whereby convection currents of theliquid covering the soluble electrode are avoided, and thereby avoidinglocal action upon the soluble electrode, and a positive electrodelocated mainly outside of the dense liquid layer at the bottom of thevessel, whereby cle Josition of salts upon the positive electr nle,crystallizing out of thc solu tion is avoided, and thereby the surfaceof the positive electrode, lct't uncovered with solid depolarizingelements and the condi- 'tions for the depolarization action occurringbetween different parts of the positive electrode maintained at amaximum.

2. An electric cell, comprising a vesscl, an exciting liquid, a solublenegative electrode situated horizontally at the bottom of said vessel,said electrode being entirely covcred by the exciting, liquid, a liquidlayer of greater density than the exciting liquid, saturated with ionsor salts of the same metal as the soluble electrode covering saidnegative electrode, said layer of liquid of greater dcnsity beingimmobilized by its weight at the bottom of the vessel and being ofsubstantially uniform constitution, whereby convection currents of theliquid covering the soluble electrode are avoidcd, and there by avoidinglocal action upon the soluble clcctrode, and a vertically arrangcdpositive electrode hayihg its lower end near the electroi llau its topin contact with the air, vs hcicby the clcctric current. generatedbetween the top and bottom of the positive electrode, scrrc to equalizeits potential and depolarize it, said' positive electrode being locatedmainly outside of the dense liquid layer at the bottom of the vessel,wherebys deposition of salts upon tho positive electrode, crystallizingout of the solution is avoided, and thereby the surface of the positiveelectrode, 1e Ft uncovered with solid dc polarizine' elements and theconditions to the dcnolarization action occurring between differentparts of the positive electrode maintained at a maximu 3. An electriccell, comprising a vessel, an ammonium chlorid exciting liquid, a zincelectrode situated horizontally at the bottom of said vessel, said zincelectrode being entirely covered by the exciting liquid, a liquid layerof greater density than the exciting liquid, saturated with zinc chloridcovering said zinc electrode, said layer of liquid of greater densitybeing immobilized by its weight at the bottom of the vessel and being ofsubstantially uniform constitution, whereby convcction currents of theliquid covering the zinc electrode are avoided, andthereby avoidinglocal action upon the zinc electrode, and a carbon electrode locatedmainly outside of the dense liquid layer at the bottom of the vessel,whereby deposition of zinc salts upon the carbon electrode crystallizingout of the saturated zinc chlorid solution, is avoided, and thereby thesurface of the carbon electrode left uncovered with solid depolarizinelements and the conditions for the dept; acization action occurringbetween different parts of the carbon electrode maintained at a maximum.

4. An electric cell, comprising a vessel, an ammonium chlorid excitingliquid, a flat zinc electrode situated horizontally at the bottom ofsaid vessel, said zinc electrode being entirely covered by the excitinliquid, a liquid layer of greater density tan the exciting liquid,saturated with zinc chlorid covering said zinc elcctrodc. said layer of,liquid of greater density being immobilized 100 by its weight at thebottom of the vessel and being of substantially uniform constitutionwhereby conrcction currents of the liquid covering the zinc clcctrodeare avoided, and thercby avoiding local action ,upon the 105 zincelectrode, and a tubular carbon electrode arranged pellltlltllcllllll'to said zinc electrode, and a st pol porous insulating material betwcentl cl zinc and carbon electrodes, said carbon electrode being locatedmainly outside of the denseliquid layer at the bottom of the vessel,whereby deposition of zinc salts upon the carbon electrode crystallizingout of the saturated zinc chlorid Solution, is avoided. and thereby thesurface of the carbon electrode lc'i't uncovered with solid depolarizingelements and the conditions for the depolarization action occurringbctwcen different parts of the carbon electrodc maintained at a maximum.

in witness \vhcreof, I have hereunto signed my name in the presence oftwo subscribing witnesses.

(HA RLES FERY.

Witnesses:

CHAS. P. PRESSLY, Rani: ARDY.

